As I walked in the door that was adorned with all manner of stickers saying Backyard Taco was the best Mexican restaurant of the universe since 2015, my expectations really shot up.... only to be shot down. By a lot!! Holy cow Gilbert....THIS is the best??? Let me tell you what I got for nearly $15. Two Carne asada tacos (corn tortillas) with rice and beans and a small soda. It's annoying and getting worse by the day to go into food establishments and get asked if I want to tip when placing my order. Huuuugely annoying. Oh but it gets worse.... When my number was called in both English and Spanish (odd), I walked over expecting nearly $15 worth of food to be waiting for me. What I got....was two small tacos.... a spoonful of Mexican rice... and a spoonful of refried beans topped with Jack cheese. I could barely believe my eyes. At the salsa bar, I used the hottest (extra hot according to them) salsa and took my seat. While the Carne asada was hot and tasted pretty good, I guarandamntee you the salsa was medium at best. Gilbert people.... if you think THAT is hot....or EXTRA hot as the sticker yelled....Y'all need to toughen up. Why am I so critical?? Value for standard Mexican food is NON EXISTANT. VERY small serving size and completely over priced. The dining area was huge with the standard boring over used "pseudo industrial" vibe. Not warm but it was clean and nice. Employees didn't really give two clicks if I was happy or not. And no....I cant recommend this place unless there's something on the menu I missed that is absolutely incredible that I missed. read more

Solid overall. Great salsa. Drive through is fast. This is my go to if I want fast Mexican food.

When they forget you hot sauce but ask for a tip..... Just a bit stunned when a cashier asks for a tip? wondering if management is aware, if so terrible business etiquette, will not be back . read more

Terrible customer service, avoid this location at all costs. Messed up orders and don't care. Advertise promos that they don't honor

I wish I were full of tacos instead of emotions! Spacious and clean with an impressive salsa bar but I think the Tempe, University Drive, location tastes better. Yeah I said it. What? I got two tacos al pastor, some chips & salsa, and washed it all down with a huge cup of horchata. After a few trips to the salsa bar where I saw one girl pouring herself a huge water cup full of guacamole [this girl is smart --- think about how many 2 oz. cups she saved!], I was set! Cucumbers with lime and salt at hand, I tackled taco after taco and I was insanely full. Still a darn good taco but I do think there's a lack of mesquite taste of coal-smoked meats that the Tempe BYT has. It still hits the spot though. So yes, four stars regardless. I wish they had some window treatment because it was as hot as the birria salsa they offer [and trust that your culo will be spicy after having that birria salsa] but other than that, still an excellent place for good ol' Gilbert. read more

Backyard Taco - Chips & salsa. - Tacos Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

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So I checked in to Backyard taco in the drive-they and Yelp gave my partner and I a coupon for a free medium drink! This helped a ton because the date between my man and I was rather expensive, so this was a nice free bee! The restaurant was well kept, even the drive thru! The service was phenomenal, especially the way the lady handled our coupon! It was a very nice ambiance and of course the food is amazing! Will definitely return to this backyard taco off of Higley. Thank you so much Backyard Taco team! read more

In the area and I've been wanting to try this place. I believe we need MORE drive throughs. Ordered carne asada taco. Bean and cheese gordita. Very friendly and professional counter guy. Used the Yelp check in freebie for medium soft drink. Small taco, 2 good tortillas and pretty good meat and cheese. Little sprinkle of chopped cabbage. Gordita....good corn masa, Schmear of beans, melted cheese. Nothing bad, nothing great. Very little seasoning. No chili's, cilantro. Needed something! I would return if in the area. Food seems clean and fresh, just not real tasty. read more

Food is always dry flavorless & cold. Never going back. Idk who owns it but honestly it's trash I even gave it a second chance and it was a waste of money. DO NOT GO! I guess California and Arizona standards are different. Zero stars if I could. read more

This place is disgusting to say the least. Should have known better when I tasted the salsa and seen the crowd (IYKYK). It also took 3 tries for the window to take our order claiming they didn't hear our order (BS), just weren't paying attention. We did get the vegetarian options and one would wonder how you can mess that up. No flavor at all. We got the crazy potatoes veggie which was also nothing but cabbage( word to the wise, don't put cabbage on a potato)Smh. Never again. The veggie bowl were a joke, they were tone little bowls with the same ingredients that were on the potato minus the beans, could be mistaken. Overall- not good food and consider your source. The place was packed with nothing but....(IYKYK) UPDATE: we went and returned the food (we were never given a receipt) and the red headed female that was the manager didn't even care to ask if there was anything they could do better etc. No apology or anything. Not to mention we had to turn around 3 exits away to go return the food when I got an incline to taste it. The businesses owners replied to this post in a DM with a generic sorry you didn't like our restaurant have a blessed day. Same reply they give everyone per all these comments. Clearly they feel they have nothing to lose. read more

I rarely do this but this place is disappointing. I passed by here tonight after picking up some twisted cookies. I decided to get their quesadilla for dinner. I ordered a steak and a chicken one to go. Their dining room was not busy at all. Some activity at the drive through. I ordered the food and waited and it was ready less than 5 minutes. I thought to myself that's super efficient. I got home and realized the food was cold. I guessed they made it ahead of time? I live like 5 mins away so traffic time is not a factor. The meat itself was tasty but the tortillas was cold, not crispy and the cheese was hard and barely there. They don't give hot sauce or anything. read more

Super delicious, as always! My mom, sister, and I went here for lunch yesterday and it was so good! Masks are required when walking around, and they have heaters on outside if you choose to sit on the patio. The tables are also spaced out to allow for social distancing. I got 2 chicken tacos and they were phenomenal. My mom got the same and my sister got carne asada. They both really enjoyed their meals, too. The atmosphere is very relaxed and the music playing is nice, if a little loud. The thing that stands out for me though is how clean and nice the bathroom was. There are private stalls within the restroom with doors that go from floor to ceiling, so you really do have privacy. All in all, I had a great meal at a decent price in a very friendly, clean environment. I would totally come here again. read more

Three stars for the food and one extra for COVID policies. The patio was well spaced out and I felt quite safe. The order line required masks as well. I had the tacos and wife had the tostado. Have I had bette? Heck yes. But the speed of the order from the time it went in til served was remarkable. The meat filling ( carne asada) was tasty albeit a little over cooked and dry. The tortilla was heated and crusty. This is a great place for some fast Mexican food and a large patio that you can sit and enjoy your meal There is also a drive through if you want to be even safer. read more

Unfortunately after ordering multiple times from this restaurant I am now leaving a review about the manager. The cashier was incredible but the female manager got on the phone and was extremely defiant and argumentative. They lost our order and our son was picking up the order and tried to blame him. The cashier admitted to losing the order but the manager but very rude and defiant. The cashier was more than happy to offer help but clearly stated he had no authority to do so. He offered to transfer me to a manager and she was less than pleasant and offered no solutions. We order from than weekly but after this interaction will no longer order from them!!! read more

We're big fans of BYT and even if we can't eat in, getting take-out has been a good experience. Same quality food, just a change in process. Their horchata is good (not grainy like some) and the meats are marinated and cooked to perfection. The tacos are street tacos style: small and focused on the meat with a few accompanying ingredients. Be sure to ask for salsa if you want some spice, but I recommend enjoying at least one as-is for your first experience. Order at least one beef and one chicken. :) read more

We had never been to backyard taco ever, this is the first and the last time. The girls at the drive thru were very rude rushing us to order and then on top of that we ordered a bunch of food and chips and salsa. Pulling out of the drive thru we decide to snack on a few chips: the most stale chips I've ever eaten in my life. We never complain and typically would just move on but we were craving chips. We went back thru the drive thru explaining the situation, when we pulled up the window they handed another bag of chips and didn't say anything..fine The chips again were very stale, I'm sure the same batch. They ignored us so we tried getting there attention then just asked for just our chips to be refunded. Another girl handed up a bag of chips and closed the window and ignored us. It's not even about the 4$ chips; it's about the fact that you have rude staff and you are selling the easiest thing and can't even give guest fresh chips. read more

First time here on Saturday, and it wasn't horrible. Very small line inside and constant drive through. It's like a mix of Baja Fresh and Filly Bs. Cashier guy was really nice when I shared j had a dairy allergy and couldn't consume it, spent the extra time to type it into the order. Salsa bar was full and clean. Outside of that, not sure why they wouldn't have options for sides of Mexican rice or maybe some lettuce or Avocado in their burritos. Seemed like it was just meat and sauce. The Salsa with the chips was slightly sweet and runny. But perhaps thats just my picky preference, texture I can scoop and have it stick to the chip. Haha. read more

I've never heard of Backyard Taco. We literally saw it on the left side of the street as we were driving through Gilbert so we decided to stop. Immediately upon walking in we noticed there was nowhere to sit inside. It was a pretty packed house. We skimmed the menu a bit and noticed a picture of a "Stuffed" steak quesadilla scroll across the screen so we decided to go with a Cheese Quesadilla and a Steak/Carne Asada Quesadilla. It didn't take long for our order to arrive. While we waited we made our way to the condiment station. I grabbed the pickled onions, cucumbers and guacamole salsa. I was about to grab a bit of the hot salsa when a lady warned me that it was really hot! I tried a little, and she was right! It was too hot for me. My boyfriend thought it was fine. Once we received our food, we sat outside because again it was packed inside, nowhere to sit at all. I was disappointed in the presentation and quality of the food. For starters, my "stuffed" steak quesadilla wasn't stuffed at all, nor was it folded and grilled shut. It wasn't a quesadilla in fact, it was a steak taco but bigger. I brought this to the worker's attention and she said this is how our quesadillas are. Mine had nothing but chewy, cold steak and onions. (See enclosed picture). My boyfriend's cheese quesadilla looked more like a children's food menu item but he said it was tasty. Because I've personally heard good things about this place from co-workers and friends, I'd like to try it again. I'll stick with street tacos next time. Before writing this review I checked out the website and menu online. The minute the page loads up you see a picture of a delicious looking, stuffed quesadilla. Just like the item I "thought" I was orderly. They should really change the pictures of the food items because it's so deceiving. read more

Backyard Taco - "Stuffed" steak quesadilla after I jazzed it up a bit - Tacos Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

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Host: Tim Order # 2101 02/22/2022 1:27pm Drove through, placed my order, pulled up to the window. I smiled and say hi as Tim told me my total without saying nothing g else. I gave him my card and asked if I could have birria salsa and before I could say "and guacamole", he slammed the window on me. I knew at that point he was going to be annoyed when he comes back and I ask for guacamole but I kept my positive attitude and continued smiling. Waited for him to come back, game me my check on a clipboard to sign, and again before I could get a word in he closes the window on me. There was only one car behind me, I purposely go after the lunch rush hour so it was not busy. I'm signing the check when he comes back with my food, I put the clipboard on my lap to free my hands and take my food, and he goes: "and my clipboard, thank you" with a bitchy attitude like he just can't deal. I tried to laugh it off as I was embarrassed for "almost taking the clipboard with me" and said I'm sorry.... He said nothing, not a "no worries" or an "it's ok, you're fine" he just gave me a forced 1/8 of a smile, and the urge to roll his eyes was so painfully evident i decided it was time wiped my stupid smile off my face. I then asked for guacamole and ...sure enough he was annoyed, like why didn't I ask for it when I asked for the other salsa at the beginning. He also was kind enough to give me a sliver of salsa that got be through a couple bites. Such a people person Tim is. read more

Backyard Taco - a bowl of sauce and napkins on a table - Tacos Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

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I ordered SHREDDED BEEF tacos as I always do here but for some reason these deaf people put pastor tacos in my order. Now I'm going to starve because I don't eat goddamn swine. I just wasted money on food I'm not even going to eat. Never going back to this particular one in my life. read more

Backyard Taco is not worth the hype. First of all, service sucks so bad. Two people at the counter, one is on the phone, made eye contact with the second person. I say hi.-response oh, I'll be right with you. Me: Okay... three ish minutes later, Counter-person is staring in my direction like I'm bothersome LOL, (no one else is in line to order) She is just waiting for person number one to get off the phone, not being productive what so ever. She asked are you doing a pick up? Yes? This person proceeds to look at the to go section AND went to go find another employee to assist by whispering in her ear...WTF, literally as you're waiting for your coworker you could've went and helped out the other counter to fill with orders. Why are you just standing there?! I'm sure you have closing tasks to do. Be a team player and help out instead of just standing there, watching the clock. The food: Carne Asada is greasy and disgusting. The tortilla was hard and stale. The potato was mediocre. The Al Pastor and birria were the best seasoned meat. For 30 dollars, it wasn't worth the rude service and mediocre food. I wouldn't recommend the place. read more

Backyard Taco - Tacos Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

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Wow! What happened!? Husband and I used to LOVE this place. We ordered our taco assortment with chips and salsa with a side of beans. First sadness was they changed the chips! No more thin hot crispy corn chips. Now they have stale white corn store bought chips. Beans were cold. Next was the cucumbers at the salad bar were old and yellowish. Not fresh and green like before. Last. Carne asada. It was chewy and had lots of grizzle. It's sad because they used to be great! I always stood up for them when people would say how bad it was. The quality just isn't there anymore. We wonder if Mesa changed at all. The only saving grace was the el pastor was delish and service was good. But quality of everything else just went down. read more

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I've eaten here a few times. It is pretty good if you eat at the restaurant. I like their different seasonings for their meat. And the selection of salsa. The store was clean. The staff were friendly. The prices were reasonable. So we ordered some food from here to be delivered. Not the same experience. It didn't travel well. Soggy tortillas. Weirdly packaged food - our orders were mixed together. Waaaaay too much cilantro on one of my tacos. Probably won't order delivery from here again. read more

Already dreaming of Tuesday so I can come back to eat this deliciousness! Anyone else thinks tacos taste especially good when it's Tuesday or is it only me?? Love how the carne asada taste very smokey. They pile a ton of meat on one taco which I definitely don't mind, the more meat the merrier! The tacos are perfect size and the seasoning is PERFECT, I didn't really add any salsa to them and that says a lot because I am the queen of sauces. I just added on some pickle onions and floated to heavenly goodness in my mouth. They have 2 dollar tacos all day Tuesday so I tried all of them. I would rank carne asada as number 1, then the el pastor, then the shredded beef then the chicken. Just because the chicken is last doesn't mean it is not goood, because it definitely was good, I just like the other ones more. I definitely want to try other items on their menu, the prices looks very decent! read more

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Taco Tuesday $2/taco! Stopped in on my way home from work and was in and out in less than 5 min. Drive-thru also available. I opted to walk in and order so I could hit up the salsa bar. Freshly sliced cucumber, radish, pickled onion, lime wedges, salsas and jalapeño guac are available. I ordered steak and el pastor on corn tortillas and both were delicious. I like the pastor more, it's got a hint of sweet. Indoor and patio seating available. Tip: Yelp check-in for a free drink. read more

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This place has seriously gone downhill. Veggies are always on the backyard floor and all rotten. Food is not tasty anymore. The salsa have no flavoring. Very disappointed with them. I would recommend Taco Boys in tempe. They need one out here cause this place is Backyard Garbage now. Managers owners please check it out and stop being greedy cause all you get here are the gringos who don't know better. read more

Backyard Taco - Batch of cilantro in my pastor burrito. - Tacos Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

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We had the shredded beefl quesadilla and it was so good! Backyard Tacos had always been consistent.

I have been trying to like this place. I have been a few times now. The food just isn't that good. The service is ok, the place is clean, but the food is just below average. read more

We were just cringing & laughing about this place. Cringing cuz the 'food' was horrendous, and laughing about the owner coming at us in his reply LOL. Trying to say we don't know authentic, yeah, cuz everyone who wants REAL AUTHENTIC MEXICAN food goes to a guy name "Tyler" LOL. U know all those Mexican Tyler's you've known right? I wonder if they still have the green slime guac? The many times me & my wife have been all over Mexico from Mexicali, San Felipe, Mazatlán, Zihuantanejo & Juarez ...trying to think of all the Tyler's we've ran into.... AVOID THIS PLACE, UNLESS U LIKE AWFUL FOOD! read more

We used to come to backyard taco at least once a week, then we started noticing the steak smelled different. We tried it a few more times and sadly realized that something must have changed, not only does it smell strange but the quality of meat is also noticeably worse. What used to be one of our favorite spots is off our list. We have also heard other people notice the same changes which is unfortunate since the tacos aren't cheap but the quality has gone down. Also go changing the salsas we noticed they didn't taste the same. If it wasn't broken why change it! read more

This is literally the worst food I have ever eaten and I have eaten a lot of food. I don't even know what I put in my mouth. I ordered birria taco with onions, cilantro and green sauce on the side. I also ordered a carne asada tostada and chips and beans. I took one bite of the chips and I did not understand how they could sell such a stale piece of food. I can't tell you how I never let a bag of chips go to waste, but I wouldn't finish these if I was upside down in my car in a ravine with nothing else for sustenance knowing I wouldn't be found for a week. The taco was so greasy I almost gagged. You wouldn't want to put the sauce on it because it was sopping with grease. Never mind that I didn't even get the green sauce that I asked for. The only thing I ate on the tostada was the actual tostada. I didn't eat anything else because my body can't process salt at that level. It would kill me I am fairly sure. I beg you not to ever eat here. It was a complete waste of 12+ dollars. I would have rather rolled that money up and lit it on fire and I know I would've felt like I had gotten it's worth out of it. But for this food, what a complete waste of my money. read more

We used to eat here at least once a week, but never again! I can't trust them to keep meat out of their beans and contaminating my meal. I messaged the owner the first time this happened in April, and he told me he was sorry for the "unpleasant" experience. Let me tell you, as a long time vegetarian, eating meat isn't "unpleasant"; it's downright vile. Imagine finding a cockroach in your food. That's how I feel about finding pieces of charred animal muscle in my dish. No wonder this restaurant got a D rating during its latest health inspection. read more

Backyard Taco - Stray meat in my bean gordita. This kitchen has a problem with cross contamination. - Tacos Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

Checked this joint out today. "All & all, I would say it's just ok"! Kinda pricey. Street Tacos are $2.25 each. Place was pretty busy at 2:00 PM. Our food took awhile (4 small tacos) & a side of refried beans. They offer complementary grilled onions & grilled jalapeños with your meal. "Yes, please"! Nice salsa bar- just wished they'd offer hot carrots. The Carne Asada was average in flavor: however the Al Pastor was quite good! The refried beans were somewhat discouraging. Very bland. Had to add salsa & some of my grilled Jalapeño to give it some kick. Definitely lacked on the taste buds! We purchased the 4 tacos & the side ( No DRINKS) it was over $14. Disappointed in the portion size that is served on a small styrofoam plate! I don't think I'd consider experiencing this place again; unless it was for a burrito, that looked a little more appealing for the price. read more

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I've come to rely on BT for my occasional (or maybe regular) taco needs. They have very conveniently located restaurants and a drive thru AND good toppings AND quick quick service... Oh and reliably good tacos. Notice I didn't say great or amazing. Yes, they are the reliably good taco place that fit the bill for convenience and quickness. I personally think their meat could use more seasoning to be craveable... But still a good choice for eating out. read more

Who wants really good carne asada? You know that thin, marinated, juicy meat with a smoky flavor having just come off the grill. When you're not cooking it up in your own backyard, you should come check this place out. I came here with Erin S. on the second day of the grand opening week. The VIBE was sort of that modern fast casual feeling with rustic touches. The space is quite large and boasts a sizable patio. The FOOD was delicious. I ordered the carne asada burrito and it filled me up good. The meat is succulent and tender, not chewy. Some other places you have to beware of those bites of carne that could go on for days. They deliver a good size burrito that's packed with mostly meat along with cabbage, onions, and red tomato sauce. This goes the same for the tacos which I can imagine are just as yummy. We ordered a side of frijoles (beans) which were tasty but not particularly remarkable. I intend to come by to check out the chicken and birria (shredded beef). I heard many good things about these other options while waiting in line, but a man only has one stomach. Take your pick from the MENU: - Tacos - Quesadillas - Crazy Potato - Grilled Gordita - Grilled Tostada - Burritos - Chips and Salsa They also offer a nice selection of Mexican bottled sodas, horchata, limonada, and jaimaca. The WAIT was bad - almost an hour. I chalk this one up to the fact the location just opened and they're working out the kinks. The volume of customers had to be slowing them down too. So, I'll give it some time before I return. Hopefully, they will have the drive-thru working by then! read more

Backyard Taco - Salsa bar and lots of of space. - Tacos Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona

Went there to see how the tacos were. Worst tacos never & the customer service was horrible. They got our order wrong & the employee working at the window was rude Small tacos & too expensive read more

Had a craving to indulge in some tacos for Taco Tuesday and decided to give Backyard Taco a chance for $2.00 chicken and al pastor tacos and $2.25 carne asada and burria (shredded beef) tacos. First impression: they were busy! The parking lot is somewhat small and crowded, especially when trying to fit the huge line of drive through cars during the taco Tuesday dinner rush. Although it made parking difficult, I figured it was a good sign. Tacos were excellent! Definitely some of the best I've had in the greater Phoenix area. My favorites were the al pastor and the chicken, but the shredded beef was also great. Most importantly, all had very flavorful and juicy meat, so they didn't need to be slathered with salsa, but the avocado salsa was probably my favorite that I tried. Also got to try bites of the bean and cheese burrito and al pastor crazy potato and both were great. I'm excited to return, even if that means battling the taco Tuesday crowds. read more

Way overpriced,was $16 for only 2 tacos and 2 sodas,and the tacos are small and don't fill you up much,you can get 2 dinners with that price from any other fast food place and it will fill you up twice as much. read more

Have come here a few times but tonight ordered from the drive through, got home and opened one of the salsa containers, poured it on my Gordita and there was a huge fly (or some other black bug) was floating in the green avocado salsa. Needless to say it all went in the trash. I think the health dept needs to go over and make sure there's no bugs in more things. How do you miss pouring a black bug into a small container of green salsa? It was the smooth salsa too not the kind with chunks. Update: I called them to let them know just now and they said "sorry to hear that." Not remotely acceptable read more

Awful. Bland salsa and tasteless birria tacos. Staff was nice enough & food came out quickly, it just wasn't good. At all. We won't be back. read more

These tacos were actually really good I underestimated back yard taco because initially, I had only gone to one and I had the steak quesadilla (back when I use to eat steak) and I didn't eat it right away I ate it like 2 hours later so it was so rubbery and gross. My babe and I had an appointment in Gilbert and had not ate all day so we decided to check this place out (he loves back yard taco) I said "fine" this time I had 3 chicken tacos which were BOMB. I will literally come back here just for them. They were not dry and were seasoned well. All and All I was satisfied I even ordered a 4th (omg I know summer is coming what am I doing?!) - The Tough Chicago Critic read more

Backyard Taco - 3 chicken tacos 4/5 wish I didn't get the onion on it - Tacos Near Me - Gilbert, Arizona